In 1999, Dan and Cate Barraford of Barnstead noticed their publishing customers were getting clobbered by increasingly high oil bills. Dan Barraford had an idea: If he could amass 100 to 150 businesses and homeowners, maybe the fuel dealers would give them a discount.

It worked – and it’s still working.

Cate Barraford, owner and president of Our Town Energy Alliance since her husband died in 2011, said her members using propane save about $1 a gallon. Oil savings are harder to gauge, but Barraford said members paid as little as $3.18 a gallon for oil last year when retail prices were at $3.70 a gallon.Visit Concord Monitor for full article

Rack pricing is fair to all parties: the buyer gets best possible price while allowing the seller to remain in business. My son implemented this for a construction company and saved them hundreds of thousands of dollars per year in fuel costs while assuing the supplier of a profit level.

I like this idea.I suppose trying to do this with automotive gas would be more complicated.

Maybe my Home Owners Assn could put in a neighborhood fuel farm. Nah, based on the track records of most HOAs that probably isn't a good idea.I am sure the zoning and EPA folks would get involved with that idea too.